From June 19 through September 4, 2010, True North Gallery presents “When the Animal Holds a Space: A Celebration of Zoomorphic Vessels,” a group exhibition featuring the work of Martye Allen, Melissa Brown, Tina Buchs, Tim Christensen-Kirby, Kim Lust, Tricia Messenger, Wendy Morgan, Ann Morris, Misun Rie, Ann Schunior, Sandy Shaw, Joan Slack, and Adrienne Speer.
The inspiration for the exhibition comes from an ancient and universal human tendency to create vessels that embody animal, or “zoomorphic,” forms. “Animals have been ‘holding spaces’ for humankind since Neolithic times,” explains Belinda Recio, owner of True North Gallery. According to Recio, archaeologists have found utilitarian and ceremonial vessels incorporating zoomorphic forms in nearly every part of the world, dating back thousands of years.
For this show, True North Gallery has assembled a collection of contemporary zoomorphic vessels—cups, bowls, urns, jars, teapots, boats, and other containers—by local and national artists. The work presents a wide diversity of animal species, ranging from ravens, owls, herons, and dragonflies to bears, rabbits, wolves, otters, and undefined species.
“Crab Boat” and “Heron Bowl” by Washington artist Ann Morris are bronzes from the artist’s “Bone Journey” series. In both pieces, Morris represents the talismanic remains of existence—shells and bones—in a light that reminds us of the power of these natural artifacts, and the animals to whom they once belonged.
Mythology and archeology inspire the work of Wisconsin artist Joan Slack. The animals that perch on the rims, lids, and edges of her stoneware vessels are reminiscent of Zuni fetishes and other indigenous animal effigies. Slack’s vessels have a sacred and ceremonial presence, evoking a mythology all their own.
“Totem” by Massachusetts artist Tina Buchs is a massive four-legged ceramic basin that departs from the artist’s usual practice of giving her animal vessels necks and heads. In addition to “Totem,” Buchs has several smaller pieces in the show, including a “herd” of tiny giraffe-like vessels. Juxtaposed against the plurality of these small, individual zoomorphs, “Totem” rises as a singular, archetypal form, suggesting origination and emanation.
The show includes work by three ceramic artists who use sgrafitto techniques: Sandy Shaw from Massachusetts, Martye Allen from Wisconsin, and Tim Christensen-Kirby from Maine. Each uses a process in which imagery is etched through black slip to the white clay beneath. Both Shaw and Allen are inspired by Mimbres pots from the American Southwest. Allen also credits prehistoric cave paintings in France and Spain, and Inuit carvings, as inspiration. Christensen-Kirby refers to his work as drawings on porcelain. Striking black and white images of ravens, wolves, whales, caribou, and other predominantly northern animals adorn the surfaces of his porcelain vessels.
Massachusetts artist Ann Schunior is also inspired by the animal imagery in petroglyphs and indigenous art, as reflected in her stoneware “Owl Urn,” which evokes the stylized owls of Inuit art. Also informed by indigenous sensibilities are the richly textured terracotta “bird jars” by Tricia Messenger from Connecticut. According to Messenger, the birds that sit on top of the jars are both decorative and talismanic, in that they “protect” the objects stored within the egg-like jars they guard. For Messenger and many of the other artists, zoomorphic vessels evoke a distant time when animals captivated our imaginations and held a larger space in our hearts.
“When the Animal Holds a Space” takes you back to that time. From June 19 through September 4, 2010 at True North Gallery, 25 Woodbury Street, South Hamilton, MA. 978-468-1962. Regular hours are Wednesday through Saturday 12 to 5 and other times by appointment. www.truenorthgallery.net
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When the Animal Holds a Space: A Celebration of Zoomorphic Vessels
From June 19 through September 4, 2010, True North Gallery presents “When the Animal Holds a Space: A Celebration of Zoomorphic Vessels,” a group exhibition featuring the work of Martye Allen, Melissa Brown, Tina Buchs, Tim Christensen-Kirby, Kim Lust, Tricia Messenger, Wendy Morgan, Ann Morris, Misun Rie, Ann Schunior, Sandy Shaw, Joan Slack, and Adrienne Speer.
The inspiration for the exhibition comes from an ancient and universal human tendency to create vessels that embody animal, or “zoomorphic,” forms. “Animals have been ‘holding spaces’ for humankind since Neolithic times,” explains Belinda Recio, owner of True North Gallery. According to Recio, archaeologists have found utilitarian and ceremonial vessels incorporating zoomorphic forms in nearly every part of the world, dating back thousands of years.
For this show, True North Gallery has assembled a collection of contemporary zoomorphic vessels—cups, bowls, urns, jars, teapots, boats, and other containers—by local and national artists. The work presents a wide diversity of animal species, ranging from ravens, owls, herons, and dragonflies to bears, rabbits, wolves, otters, and undefined species.
“Crab Boat” and “Heron Bowl” by Washington artist Ann Morris are bronzes from the artist’s “Bone Journey” series. In both pieces, Morris represents the talismanic remains of existence—shells and bones—in a light that reminds us of the power of these natural artifacts, and the animals to whom they once belonged.
Mythology and archeology inspire the work of Wisconsin artist Joan Slack. The animals that perch on the rims, lids, and edges of her stoneware vessels are reminiscent of Zuni fetishes and other indigenous animal effigies. Slack’s vessels have a sacred and ceremonial presence, evoking a mythology all their own.
“Totem” by Massachusetts artist Tina Buchs is a massive four-legged ceramic basin that departs from the artist’s usual practice of giving her animal vessels necks and heads. In addition to “Totem,” Buchs has several smaller pieces in the show, including a “herd” of tiny giraffe-like vessels. Juxtaposed against the plurality of these small, individual zoomorphs, “Totem” rises as a singular, archetypal form, suggesting origination and emanation.
The show includes work by three ceramic artists who use sgrafitto techniques: Sandy Shaw from Massachusetts, Martye Allen from Wisconsin, and Tim Christensen-Kirby from Maine. Each uses a process in which imagery is etched through black slip to the white clay beneath. Both Shaw and Allen are inspired by Mimbres pots from the American Southwest. Allen also credits prehistoric cave paintings in France and Spain, and Inuit carvings, as inspiration. Christensen-Kirby refers to his work as drawings on porcelain. Striking black and white images of ravens, wolves, whales, caribou, and other predominantly northern animals adorn the surfaces of his porcelain vessels.
Massachusetts artist Ann Schunior is also inspired by the animal imagery in petroglyphs and indigenous art, as reflected in her stoneware “Owl Urn,” which evokes the stylized owls of Inuit art. Also informed by indigenous sensibilities are the richly textured terracotta “bird jars” by Tricia Messenger from Connecticut. According to Messenger, the birds that sit on top of the jars are both decorative and talismanic, in that they “protect” the objects stored within the egg-like jars they guard. For Messenger and many of the other artists, zoomorphic vessels evoke a distant time when animals captivated our imaginations and held a larger space in our hearts.
“When the Animal Holds a Space” takes you back to that time. From June 19 through September 4, 2010 at True North Gallery, 25 Woodbury Street, South Hamilton, MA. 978-468-1962. Regular hours are Wednesday through Saturday 12 to 5 and other times by appointment. www.truenorthgallery.net